Chapter Four #3
“So, what were the bots doing with the fruit while you were napping?”
“Processing, freeze drying, storing, and harvesting seeds. The fruit and vegetables become the base of the food in the dispenser.”
“Oh, that’s smart. Wait, if I can codify the flavour profiles into absolutes, then I can write a program that will be able to combine them into familiar foods.” She licked her fingers absently and started to calculate the flavours in each food. “I need a mass spectrometer.”
He snorted. “Wash your hands. It is time for the workshop.”
She may have splashed a little enthusiastically at the front of her suit, but she was sure that Birun would drip dry eventually.
He snorted, washed his hands, and picked her up with an arm around her waist. “Come on, little fish.”
Trin grinned. “The suit washes off easy and doesn’t go transparent. Well done.”
He snorted, and they were on the way back to the large doors they had entered through.
She hung from his arm and said, “So, is my workshop this way?”
He snorted. “You have a focused mind.”
“One thing at a time. Play your cards right, and you could make it to the roster.”
He stopped in his tracks and set her on the floor. “What was that?”
She blushed, and the whimsy bolted for cover. “Never mind?”
“Oh, your mind said it as well. You were happy and plotting, and your mind guessed at what I would look like naked.”
She also knew that she was a little befuddled, so she had put a happy face sticker over his groin. “Oh, no.”
He grinned. “Oh, yes. You keep forgetting I read minds.”
“Yes, I do. I am really sorry about the uh... sticker.”
“And I can see you are extremely nervous and trying to figure out which way to run.”
She sighed and settled, looking at his face, meeting his gaze. “I am sorry. I was having fun and getting carried away.”
“And you apologize for having fun again.”
“Well, you look angry.”
“Do I?” He arched a brow.
She focused. “No, you look amused, but I don’t know you well enough to know what you are planning to do with that amusement.”
He leaned down and kissed her cheek, cupping her jaw as imagery filled her mind, and there was no sticker.
Her eyes widened, and the details of Birun and her flowed through her mind. She whispered softly, “I don’t think I bend that way.”
He chuckled. “We will see.”
She swallowed. “You really want to find out, don’t you?”
He grinned and laughed softly. “Come on. We are going to look at your workshop, and then, after lunch, I will work while you can go play. I will come and get you at dinner.”
She snorted. “Cool.”
They headed to the door that was halfway between the dining hall and the greenhouse.
The door opened at her touch, and her eyes bugged out.
It was a workshop the size of a gym, and it had a lab section, a metalworking section, a nanite programming station, and a wood and trim station, and those were the areas visible from the doorway.
She darted inside, and when she saw a fabricator that was all hers, she ran over and hugged it. “Oh, you and me are going to be buddies, aren’t we?”
She turned it on, and as it hummed, she programmed what she wanted with rapid clicks of the keyboard.
“Time for lunch.”
“We just ate.”
“Two hours ago. You need protein, and I am going to remove caffeine from the dispenser if you don’t come right now.”
She looked at him in horror and clicked the execute button.
“Okay, but don’t mess with my caffeine. I need it to live.” She walked over to him and took the hand he held out.
“Do I qualify for a hug? This was assembled for you last night. It was everything I could think of.”
She turned and wrapped her arms around him, pressing her face against his chest. “Thank you very much. It is the best present ever.”
He stroked her hair. “I return the sentiment.”
She looked up at him, and Boss’s voice came through the speakers. “You are welcome.”
She blushed and laughed. Birun leaned down for a kiss, and she let him come until his lips were on hers.
The kiss was soft and pleasant, and Trin went up on her toes to get more pressure.
She felt Birun’s lips flex in a smile, and he cupped her head, and his tongue slid inside.
He was warm, and she cuddled close as the kiss continued.
It felt nice, really nice, and her entire body was humming and throbbing in turn when he finally lifted his head.
“Now, we get you lunch.”
She blinked several times. “Oh.”
He stroked her cheek with a smile. “You were not kidding about singular focus. You were with me one hundred percent. I would not have stopped, but I don’t believe your first time with me should be up against a wall or standing in the hallway.”
Trin sighed as she reeled her senses back. “Right. Food, right?”
He nodded. “Correct.”
He took her hand, and they walked to the food court. They went to the terminal, and he put her in front of him while she made selections.
He made his selections after hers, and she blinked. “You don’t eat much.”
“I had a snack earlier.”
“The fruit?”
“No. The kiss.”
Trin was shocked. “I thought you ate sex.”
“As intriguing as that mental image is, no. Hmrain consume either pleasure or pain. You enjoyed the kiss, ergo, I had a snack. Once we link properly, our bodies will harmonize and consuming will be easier.”
“Oh.” She took the tray that came out and walked to the table, her mind trying to figure out if a proper link was what had been displayed to her earlier. It would certainly be energetic.
He sat with her and ate his small portions.
Trin nodded. She was currently junk food. Stilled immediate hunger but not proper nutrition.
He chuckled. “Exactly.”
She blinked. Right. Psychic.